A Plan She Should Have Skipped
by tkelparis
Summary: Written after watching "Slither" from season 5. A "what if" what seemed very possible at the time.


Title: A Plan She Should Have Skipped

Series: Stopping Nikki Dearest

Author: Kendra Crispin

Rating: Oh... K, maybe T

Spoilers: "Grow," "Slither"

Genres: Nothing beyond co-workers for Alex and Bobby this time. Sorry, AI people, but this was what the story called for.

Disclaimer: The ending of "Slither" should prove I have nothing to do with the show.

Author's Notes: I wrote this while waiting for the tape to finish recording "Gray's Anatomy" for my mom. Then I could write a review of "Slither." I'll need extra time for that; I nearly hyperventilated watching the episode. Couldn't continue writing what I could for the review after the disclosure.

Summary: Method #117: Alex has cops watch Nikki's French boyfriend and Mala at the end of "Slither." Drastic consequences ensue...

The detectives and the ADA watch as the cops Eames recruited to start the watch on Bernard Fremont, aka Thierry Gervais, and Mala carefully follow their quarry. Then they walk in the opposite direction, frustration at the unresolved issues of the case.

A man's voice groans, and a feminine scream pierces the bustle of the courthouse corridor. Eames, Goren, and Carver all realize it's coming from the stairwell that Fremont and Mala were going down.

But at the same moment, two male voices holler, "Police! Stop!" Then everyone hears the sounds of feet barreling down those stairs and outside.

Eames and Goren's eyes meet briefly, then they take off. Carver follows on their heels, starting to guess what that silent exchange suggests.

They plow through the doors, and find Fremont lying on the stairs, unconscious. Mala weeps desperately, "Bernard... Bernard... Baby, please." When Goren reaches her side to check Bernard's vitals, Mala looks up helplessly at them. "A woman bumped into him, and then she ran out."

Eames turns to a uniform who followed them. "Call EMS. Secure the area."

Fremont's lawyer catches up with them. "Mala, come on."

Goren announces with a tiny grimace, "There's no pulse." He takes him time to check Bernard's side, and finds blood in almost the same spot as on Zach Thayler. He looks up at Eames and Carver. "Nicole?"

"Maybe poisons," Eames says with a grim satisfaction, "were a lesson he should have skipped."

"He showed her the door to another world," Carver observes, nearly shaking his head at the outcome. "And she repaid the favor."

Eames' cell goes off. She recognizes the number as belonging to one of the uniforms she sent after Fremont. "Yes?"

The voice is loud enough for Goren and Carver to overhear. "Detective, meet us outside."

With that, Eames slides past Goren to check on their captive. Carver and Goren go back up to coax Mala into coming with them. "Miss, we need you to ID the woman," Carver says calmly. An almost pleading look from Goren finishes their job.

They reach the outside to find Eames practically slinking down the street with an almost smug posture. On the asphalt, one uniform looks warily at a discarded purse while the other holds the cuffed woman down at the back with a foot. A hint of blood is coming from her face. "What do you guys have?"

The senior of the two uniforms looks up holding down their perp. "We saw her bump him, and it looked like she made eye contact with him before she ran. We sprinted, and Michaels here tackled her. She hit her face against the curb when she struggled during the fall."

"That's her," Mala wails as she catches sight. "That's her!" The lawyer promptly pulls her aside.

Eames crosses the final distance, reaches beneath the wig she knows is there, and yanks the woman's head back by her real hair. A familiar voice yelps wordlessly in pain. Eames smirks as Nicole Wallace turns her bloodied face to see her tormentor. "I guess Bernard was right about you: you are a natural born killer. It wouldn't have mattered if he hadn't gotten his hands on you; you'd be the same trash he was."

Goren leaves Mala and Carver to join them. "You couldn't resist letting him know that you were getting revenge for him getting out early, could you?" He glares at Nicole's back, finding grim pleasure in knowing they finally had her where they wanted her. "Ooh, you need a doctor for that. We can't have you dying from infection before we can execute you."

Nicole can't look at him until he makes it to her other side. Then she pulls out a tiny grin. "Hello, Bobby."

Goren smirks back. "I wouldn't look so happy if I were you. You fled the state, violating your bail."

"And now," Eames continues, with a bigger smirk, "you've committed yet another murder crime and we caught you red-handed. This'll help us prove how you killed Zach."

"Congratulations, Miss Wallace," Carver announces as he makes his presence known. "You're going back to prison now, whether you like it or not. And this time, no judge will let you out on bail, and I can't imagine a jury that won't convict on this crime." He leaves it unsaid that the odds of her being convicted on Ella and Zach's murders have been drastically increased.

With that, more uniforms take her away. "We need a CSU tech with tongs and tweezers," Eames requests as Nicole leaves for good. "Who knows what other surprises she has in there?"

Another uniform guides the distraught Mala away while the area swarms with officers. Carver guides the detectives back inside, away from the chaos. "So, do you think he was in contact with Nicole?"

Goren shrugs. "Who knows now? She's smart enough to have figured it out from that photo in the Ledger. Maybe it doesn't matter now that he's dead."

Eames shakes her head. "If he did, he was a stupid, greedy male to keep up with those other women while trying to get back into her good graces. You know Nicole hates sexual rivals."

THE END


End file.
